card review Reluctant Final Parting

Card

Review

Reluctant Final Parting

Card text:

Discard any ally if its current site is an Under-deeps site or if its current site's nearest Haven is not the same as the nearest Haven for the site at which the ally can be played. Discard this card when any play deck is exhausted. Cannot be duplicated. "A deep loneliness and sense of loss was on them. They stood silent, reluctant to make the final parting..."-LotRI

Like Muster Disperses, this card is a spoil sport. Played late in the game, you can turn the tables on your opponent who was counting on doubling his or her MPs because you had no allies. If played correctly, he or she has practically no time to have the ally get shuffled back into his or her play deck (via Smoke Rings or exhausting the deck). Note that the key for this card is timing: play it early and it is only a nuisance; play it late and when your opponents allies are too far from home to resist the a reluctant final parting for a significant MP swing.

Quickbeam, Gollum and Goldberry see considerable play in decks, though Roac the Raven and Shadowfax make more than a cameo appearance. Reluctant Final Parting in all but the most sedentary of decks is likely to cause most allies to be discarded; the notable exception being Noble Hound.

Be aware that this card affects you, but only if you allow it. In playing this card (only one is really needed in a deck, as you do not need it early), you can either play with Noble Hounds, or abandon allies entirely. In the case of the former, you stand to win double your MPs (from one to two or two to four.)

In the latter case, you have freed up slots in your deck by leaving out allies. You can substitute either more items or more effects on your hazard side or have a leaner deck; you know, something closer to the Council of Lorien's 30/30.

While it can be targeted by Marvels Told, the damage is most often already done.

Think long and hard about this card: does it fit your resource strategy (leaving out allies) and harm your opponent's collecting of MPs far more than it effects you? It is not for everyone, but in a well planned game, you can surprise your opponent and lever off his or her position.